Tag Groups used in Events

To create an event in AVAnnotate, you need some information about the audiovisual event itself. If you already have a IIIF manifest for the audiovisual event, select “Import Manifest” and paste in the reference. If you do not have a IIIF manifest yet, we’ll create one now directly in AVAnnotate.

IIIF is a framework for delivering high-quality, attributed digital objects online at scale. Creating IIIF manifests allows for the metadata associated with an AVAnnotate project (e.g., rights information, audiovisual materials, annotations, etc.) to be easily shared and reproduced.

To create a new project in AVAnnotate, first ensure you are on the “My Projects” page. “Shared Projects” indicates projects that other users have created and shared access with you, while “My Projects” allows you to create new projects under your own GitHub account.

Next add the names of any project contributors. This information will appear at the bottom of your completed AVAnnotate project, like an author byline.

Finally, you’ll have the opportunity to add other GitHub contributors to collaborate on your project. To do this, you’ll need your collaborator’s GitHub username. Adding collaborators lets other users have access to the backend of your project.

Once you’ve created your AVAnnotate project, the next step is to link your audiovisual events to the project. On this screen, you’ll notice that The AVAnnotate application interface is split into two primary sections: Data Manager and Site Builder, the latter is discussed in a later video.

In the Data Manager section, a project author can import, upload, edit, and add all of the data associated with Annotations, Events, and Tags. The Events tab allows users to upload, create, and edit Events. Events are a central conceptual element of an AVAnnotate project and may comprise one or more AV files, which may be associated with time-stamped annotations.

The Tags tab allows users to upload, create, and edit project-wide tags and tag groups. Tags are labels used in a published AVAnnotate project to index, organize, and discover topics in the annotations.

First, we need to add an event by selecting “Add,” then “Import.” When you import an event, you’re telling AVAnnotate that you already have a file that includes all of the necessary information for AVAnnotate to reference your audiovisual file.

To do this, we recommend using the AVAnnotate Event template, which you can find on our website. The Event template is a downloadable spreadsheet that provides space for you to input information about the Event label, item type, file label, file URL, and an optional citation and description.

Once you’ve filled out the event spreadsheet and selected it for upload to AVAnnotate, you’ll be prompted to configure the data from the file, which means you’re making sure AVAnnotate reads your event file correctly. Use the dropdown menus to match the information from your spreadsheet.

Once you’ve configured the data, the option to “Import” should appear. Select “Import,” and then select “Save Event.”

Video 1a demonstrates how to add an audiovisual event by uploading a completed spreadsheet that contains information about the event. This video will show you how to create an event directly in AVAnnotate without the spreadsheet upload. To “Create” an event, select Add, then “Create.”

To create an event in AVAnnotate, you need some information about the audiovisual event itself. If you already have a IIIF manifest for the audiovisual event, select “Import Manifest” and paste in the reference. If you do not have a IIIF manifest yet, we’ll create one now directly in AVAnnotate.

Sometimes AVAnnotate can read the duration straight from the file link, though other times you may need to enter it manually using the hh:mm:ss format. This is all of the information that’s required to create an event, but you also have the option to add a description, citation, and select a copyright status or Creative Commons Rights Statement.

Once you’ve built a project and imported or added your audiovisual events, you’re ready to add Tags to the project. Tags are short, descriptive words or phrases that will help you categorize and filter your timestamped annotations across the entire project.

To import Tags, we’ll start in the Data Manager section, and then toggle over to Tags. As with the “import” option for Events, “Import” in this case means we have already filled out a Tag spreadsheet template and are ready to upload it into AVAnnotate.

Select “Import,” and then choose your Tag file. Configure the data so that the column headers match the data you’re importing, which should enable the “Import” option.

Double check that the preview of the imported data matches your spreadsheet, and then select “Save.”

Now your Tags section will be populated with Tag groups and individual tags.

You can edit a Tag group by selecting the three-dot menu, and edit individual tags by selecting the pencil icon. Here you can rename a tag or move it into a different tag group using the dropdown menu. You can edit tags at any time.

To upload annotations to your audiovisual event in AVAnnotate, you have two options. First, you can create annotations in a Google Sheets template available in the documentation and import that template in AVAnnotate’s Data Manager section. The second option you have is to add individual annotations to your audiovisual event directly in AVAnnotate’s Data Manager section. In this video we will show you how to complete the first option.

Navigate to AVAnnotate’s documentation. Then, go to the Projects tab and you will see the Annotation Spreadsheet Template under the Bulk Uploading section. Select the hyperlink, and then make a copy of the file by selecting File and then Make a Copy. Don’t delete the headers in row 1.

Now, you can start adding your annotations. In column A, add the start time of your annotation, using the format of HH:MM:SS. Next, in column B, add the end time of your annotation using the same format. Column C is where you will include the text of your annotation; you can type directly into this cell.

Please note that basic HTML tags are allowed in the body of annotations to style your text.

Finally, add at least one tag that corresponds to an annotation by inserting the tag name into column D. You can add multiple tags to an annotation by using the pipe (|) symbol on your keyboard.

Once you have added all of your annotations for an audiovisual event into the template, you can select File, Download, and it is suggested that you save your file as a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet.

Finally, navigate back to AVAnnotate. In Data Manager, select the audiovisual event that you would like to associate with the annotation file. Below the audio, you will see that there are no annotations associated with the event. Select Import, choose the annotation file from your drive, and then you will be prompted to configure the data.

The second option you have for uploading annotations to an audiovisual event in AVAnnotate is to add annotations individually. This option does not require using the spreadsheet. Instead, you can add individual annotations through the Add option in an audiovisual event.

To add an annotation, navigate to the Data Manager section of AVAnnotate and select an audiovisual event. Next, select the Add button and create an annotation. A box will appear for you to insert information about the annotation you would like to add.

First, add the start time of your annotation using the format of HH:MM:SS. In the End Time box, add the end time of your annotation in the same format. Below, you can type your annotation directly into the box and use the above buttons to style your text. Lastly, add at least one tag to your annotation by selecting a tag from the drop-down menu. Please note that you must have already added such a tag to AVAnnotate via the instructions in video 2a or 2b.

You will now see in Site Builder an auto-generated page. To disable an auto-generated page, select the three dots on the right side of the row, and then Disable Auto-Generation. This will create a blank page for your event, which you can add information to by following the details in the next video.

To add an existing Event to a custom page, select “Insert,” and then “Embed AV.” You’ll then see the option to select one of your audiovisual events, and then customize what elements of the events you want to appear on the blank page. The default will include the event’s annotations, label, and description that you inputted when you created the event, but you can choose to include or exclude any of these details when embedding an event on a custom page.

IIIF is a framework for delivering high-quality, attributed digital objects online at scale. Creating IIIF manifests allows for the metadata associated with an AVAnnotate project (e.g., rights information, audiovisual materials, annotations, etc.) to be easily shared and reproduced.

To access a direct link to event media, we recommend locating or uploading the file to the Internet Archive, and then copying the .mp3, .mp4, .wav, etc. from the gray “Download Options” box.

For more information and next steps, please see the AVAnnotate documentation.

To create a new project in AVAnnotate, first ensure you are on the “My Projects” page. “Shared Projects” indicates projects that other users have created and shared access with you, while “My Projects” allows you to create new projects under your own GitHub account.

Select “Add Project,” and then we’re going to enter some information about your new project. First, use the dropdown to select the name of the GitHub Organization that the project will belong to. This will likely be your GitHub username, though it can also be a team repository.

Finally, you’ll have the opportunity to add other GitHub contributors to collaborate on your project. To do this, you’ll need your collaborator’s GitHub username. Adding collaborators lets other users have access to the backend of your project.

Double check that the columns match the data you’ve created, and then select Import and Save.

Lastly, select Save to add your annotation to the audiovisual file.

This is what an auto-generated page may look like.

In the Site Builder tab, select “Add Page,” and then “Blank Page.” What this will do is create a fully customizable page, which you can use to differently showcase the audiovisual events you’ve already created in your project, or build out new pages with essays, images, or other media related to your project. You can also use a custom page to create a bibliography, compare clips from your AV events, or display your AV events alongside other related media.

If, for example, I was using this blank page to feature additional media that I want to associate with a particular event, I would select the AV event’s existing page as the parent of this new page. In this way, the blank page feature can be used to structure a project and create relationships between different pages.

Next, you’ll make a selection about the project’s public accessibility. Selecting a Private Repository ensures that the project is not published online. You can switch this access setting later.

To create an event in AVAnnotate, you need some information about the audiovisual event itself. If you already have a IIIF manifest for the audiovisual event, select “Import Manifest” and paste in the reference. If you do not have a IIIF manifest yet, we’ll create one now directly in AVAnnotate.

IIIF is a framework for delivering high-quality, attributed digital objects online at scale. Creating IIIF manifests allows for the metadata associated with an AVAnnotate project (e.g., rights information, audiovisual materials, annotations, etc.) to be easily shared and reproduced.

Select “Create Manifest” and provide a label for your event. Next, add at least one audiovisual item you’d like associated with the event. You should indicate whether the item is audio or video, include the label, and then paste the direct link to the media file. Unlike a URL to a webpage that may end in .com, for example, direct links should always end in the file format (.mp3, .mp4, .wav, etc.).

To access a direct link to event media, we recommend locating or uploading the file to the Internet Archive, and then copying the .mp3, .mp4, .wav, etc. from the gray “Download Options” box.

The exception to this rule concerns links from platforms such as Youtube; AVAnnotate can handle a URL to a YouTube video when creating an event.

Navigate to AVAnnotate’s documentation. Then, go to the Projects tab and you will see the Annotation Spreadsheet Template under the Bulk Uploading section. Select the hyperlink, and then make a copy of the file by selecting File and then Make a Copy. Don’t delete the headers in row 1.

In the Site Builder tab, select “Add Page,” and then “Blank Page.” What this will do is create a fully customizable page, which you can use to differently showcase the audiovisual events you’ve already created in your project, or build out new pages with essays, images, or other media related to your project. You can also use a custom page to create a bibliography, compare clips from your AV events, or display your AV events alongside other related media.

Once you’ve created the blank page, go ahead and give it a title. You can edit the page title at any time. You can also assign the new blank page a “parent” page. When you create a new blank page, it will not be associated with a particular event in your project until you manually assign it via the Parent Page dropdown menu. Selecting “No Parent” will let this new page stand alone in the project. Selecting a parent for the new page will subordinate the new page so that it appears under another page in the project’s Table of Contents.

If, for example, I was using this blank page to feature additional media that I want to associate with a particular event, I would select the AV event’s existing page as the parent of this new page. In this way, the blank page feature can be used to structure a project and create relationships between different pages.

This video will walk you through how to customize the appearance of blank pages. To see examples of how others have customized pages in their AVAnnotate projects, see the AVAnnotate documentation and website.

For more information and next steps, please see the AVAnnotate documentation.

In this video we will introduce you to AVAnnotate’s Site Builder, which is where pages are added, edited, and organized for an AVAnnotate project. Pages may be created as auto-generated pages or custom pages. In this video, we will show you how to create an auto-generated page that includes an audiovisual event with an associated title, description, and annotations.

Navigate from the Data Manager section to Site Builder by selecting the tab. This page will show you all of the web pages that have been created for your AVAnnotate project. For this example, we will see a home or landing page (identified with the home icon), and a page for each audiovisual event. These pages have all been auto-generated, meaning that they will each be pre-populated with the data we have already imported into AVAnnotate.

To add another auto-generated page, select the Add Page drop down and select Auto-Generated. You will then be prompted to select either a home page or audiovisual event to generate a page for. Select either, and then click Add. This will create a new auto-generated page.

You will now see in Site Builder an auto-generated page. To disable an auto-generated page, select the three dots on the right side of the row, and then Disable Auto-Generation. This will create a blank page for your event, which you can add information to by following the details in the next video.

In this video, we will teach you how to build custom pages as part of your AVAnnotate project. The blank page feature provides AVAnnotate users the flexibility to structure and design their project outside of the preset format of auto-generated pages.

In the Site Builder tab, select “Add Page,” and then “Blank Page.” What this will do is create a fully customizable page, which you can use to differently showcase the audiovisual events you’ve already created in your project, or build out new pages with essays, images, or other media related to your project. You can also use a custom page to create a bibliography, compare clips from your AV events, or display your AV events alongside other related media.

Once you’ve created the blank page, go ahead and give it a title. You can edit the page title at any time. You can also assign the new blank page a “parent” page. When you create a new blank page, it will not be associated with a particular event in your project until you manually assign it via the Parent Page dropdown menu. Selecting “No Parent” will let this new page stand alone in the project. Selecting a parent for the new page will subordinate the new page so that it appears under another page in the project’s Table of Contents.

If, for example, I was using this blank page to feature additional media that I want to associate with a particular event, I would select the AV event’s existing page as the parent of this new page. In this way, the blank page feature can be used to structure a project and create relationships between different pages.

To add an existing Event to a custom page, select “Insert,” and then “Embed AV.” You’ll then see the option to select one of your audiovisual events, and then customize what elements of the events you want to appear on the blank page. The default will include the event’s annotations, label, and description that you inputted when you created the event, but you can choose to include or exclude any of these details when embedding an event on a custom page.

Additionally, you can choose to include only a clip of a given event, and then select the start and end times of the clip you want featured on the new blank page. You can also insert multiple clips side-by-side on a blank page. Select “Insert,” and then “Compare AV,” and follow the same steps.

This video will walk you through how to customize the appearance of blank pages. To see examples of how others have customized pages in their AVAnnotate projects, see the AVAnnotate documentation and website.

To customize a new blank page in your project, you’ll use the text editor. From left to right, the options are as follows: select page layout via column width and horizontal lines; undo/redo work; select text and header format via the dropdown menu; bold, italic, underline, and strikethrough options; insert code; insert quote block; change the color of the text background and text itself; insert numbered or bulleted lists; create a table of contents; justify text; and insert a link or image.

When you insert columns into the page, you’re changing where media will be placed on the page by splitting the page into differently-sized columns. You can customize what goes into the columns using the rest of the text editor features.

Insert images into the blank page using the rightmost button. Remember that AVAnnotate does not store your media files, but rather references them via URL. This means images you add to a custom page should be referenced via the image link address, rather than a file saved on your personal device.

Select Save to add these changes to your AVAnnotate project.

Publishing and sharing your AVAnnotate project happens in the Site Builder section. You can publish your project as either a GitHub Pages site or a static site. In this video, we will show you how to publish your project via GitHub Pages.

First, let’s look at the GitHub Pages option. GitHub Pages is a static site hosting service, which means that it will use material in your AVAnnotate project’s GitHub repository to deploy a publicly-viewable website.

To deploy your AVAnnotate project via GitHub pages, navigate to the Site Builder section.

From there, select Publish and confirm that GitHub Pages Site is selected as the type of site you would like to publish. Select Publish once more, and wait 30 seconds to a few minutes for GitHub to process your project. Please be patient— do not re-publish your project until this process is completed.

Finally, select the three-dot menu and select Website to view your published AVAnnotate project.

In this video, we will show you how to publish your AVAnnotate project as a static site so that it can be deployed locally.

The second option you have for publishing your AVAnnotate project is to create a static site in your GitHub repository. This option does not use GitHub Pages, and thus does not immediately create a publicly-viewable website. Instead, this option creates an additional repository in your AVAnnotate GitHub project that can be hosted locally.

To create a static site repository in your GitHub project, navigate to the Site Builder section. From there, select Publish and confirm that Static Site is selected as the type of site you would like to publish. Select Publish once more.

From there, you can now download your AVAnnotate project. To find the project’s GitHub repository, go to the project homepage on the AVAnnotate Dashboard, click the three-dot menu, and select Repository. Use the green Code button to Download ZIP and save the .zip file to the local computer.